Italy pushes EU to list Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as terrorist group

ROME: Italy will push European Union partners this week to place Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) on the EU’s terrorist list, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Monday, signalling a major shift in Rome’s stance.

Until now, Italy had resisted efforts to brand the IRGC as a terrorist organisation. But Tajani said the recent violent crackdown on street protests in Iran, which reportedly killed thousands, could not be ignored.

“The losses suffered by the civilian population during the protests require a clear response,” Tajani wrote on X. He added he would raise the issue on Thursday at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

Tajani said he would propose, in coordination with EU partners, the inclusion of the Revolutionary Guards on the list of terrorist organisations, along with individual sanctions against those responsible for these heinous acts.

Being designated a terrorist group would trigger legal, financial, and diplomatic restrictions, severely limiting the IRGC’s operations in Europe.

The IRGC, formed after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, controls major parts of Iran’s economy and armed forces and oversees the country’s ballistic missile and nuclear programmes.

Some EU members have previously supported listing the IRGC, while others feared it could damage diplomatic ties with Iran, hinder nuclear negotiations, and threaten EU nationals detained in the country.

However, Iran’s recent crackdown on protests has reignited the debate. The IRGC is already included in the EU’s human rights sanctions regime, and Italy now wants it added to the EU terrorist list.

EU diplomats said Italian, French, and Spanish officials raised concerns earlier this month during a Brussels meeting. If France continues to object, efforts to sanction the IRGC could fail.